The International League of Peoples’ Struggle (ILPS) Commission 3 (In Defense of Human Rights and Political Prisoners) condemns in strongest terms the assassination of Omar Nayef Zayed, a former Palestinian political prisoner who sought asylum in Bulgaria.
The International League of Peoples’ Struggle (ILPS) Commission 3 (In Defense of Human Rights and Political Prisoners) condemns in strongest terms the assassination of Omar Nayef Zayed, a former Palestinian political prisoner who sought asylum in Bulgaria.
As we mourn the death of Zayed, we salute him for his courage and resilience in his life-long struggle for the freedom of Palestine and its people from the US-backed Zionist occupation. We also convey our sincerest condolences to his family and comrades in the movement for Palestinian liberation.
Zayed died after falling from a high storey of the Palestinian Embassy building in Sofia, Bulgaria. He took refuge in the Embassy after Zionist and Bulgarian forces broke into his house on December 17, 2015 to arrest him for extradition to Israel. Earlier on, the Israeli Embassy wrote a letter to the Bulgarian Ministry of Justice demanding Zayed’s extradition as he is a fugitive from the law.
Zayed was arrested in 1986 and sentenced to life imprisonment for “targeting illegal Zionist settlers in Jerusalem.” He escaped Zionist prison in 1990 when he was transferred to a hospital while on a 40-day hunger strike. He stayed and raised a family in Bulgaria where he ran a grocery store in the Palestinian community in Sofia as he continued with his commitment for the liberation of his country.
Media reports on his fall did not exclude the possibility of foul play, of him being pushed down the building. The Israeli media itself was the first to report that Zayed was assassinated although the Palestinian Ambassador refuted the allegation. The fact is Palestinians anywhere in the world have been continuously persecuted. More than 800,000 Palestinians have been jailed since the 1967 occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. The Israel State intelligence group Mossad is responsible for special operations overseas.
We hold Israel and its intelligence group Mossad, the Palestinian Authority and the Bulgarian government accountable for the killing of Omar Nayef Zayed. We demand justice for Zayed and for the Palestinian people.
ILPS Commission 3 members: Karapatan Alliance for the Advancement of People’s Rights – Philippines, Hustisya Philippines, Society of Ex-Detainees against Detention and Arrest (SELDA), Desaparecidos, Bayan Southern Tagalog (Philippines), Pamalakaya, Amihan Northern Mindanao, Health Alliance for Human Rights Philippines, Fundacion Amancio Villatoro – Guatemala, Frente Popular Revolucionario – Mexico, Pinatud A Saleng Ti Umili – Hongkong, Ugnayan ng mga Manggagawa sa Agrikultura, Promotion for Church People’s Response – Philippines, Bagong Alyansang Makabayan – US, Defend Job Philippines, SoCSKSarGenDS Agenda, Cordillera People’s Alliance – Philippines, Canada Philippines Solidarity for Human Rights, Gabriela New York, Kalumbay Northern Mindanao, Filipino Women Migrant Workers Association – Hongkong, Pasaka-Southern Mindanao, Public Interest Law Center, Kilusang Magbubukid ng Pilipinas – Northern Mindanao, Kasimbayan, MOVADEF-Peru, CRA Manipur, Kasama-Timog Katagalugan, New York Campaign for Human Rights in the Philippines, Samidoun Palestinian Political Prisoners Network, Student Christian Movement of the Philippines, Ontario Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines – Canada
Additional endorser: Revolutionary Students Movement – University of Ottawa